


Strangers

by peachglaze



Category: The Arcana (Visual Novel)
Genre: Canon Divergence, F/M, Female Apprentice (The Arcana), Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Gender-Neutral Pronouns, Gender-neutral Reader, Light Angst, M/M, Male Apprentice (The Arcana), Memory Loss, Nonbinary Apprentice (The Arcana)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-04
Updated: 2020-12-05
Packaged: 2021-03-10 04:53:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,997
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27878670
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/peachglaze/pseuds/peachglaze
Summary: 'The crisp Vesuvian air hits you when the shop door opens, the golden bell above it filling the room with its chime. A familiar scent tickles your nose, hints of something earthy and cool- like the smell of a forest after rainfall. It swirls around in your head and leaves you feeling warm, almost safe.From one look at this person, you knew even Julian would look small next to him. Not from just height alone- he was large in every sense of the word. His body thick and strong.But despite his intimidating size, that warm feeling doesn’t waver.'Doesn't follow the canon of the game. You're still an apprentice under Asra, but things play out a bit differently.
Relationships: Apprentice & Muriel (The Arcana), Apprentice/Muriel (The Arcana), Muriel (The Arcana)/Reader, Muriel (The Arcana)/You
Comments: 4
Kudos: 27





	Strangers

**Author's Note:**

> Hi!!
> 
> This idea came to me at 12am and I had to jot it down! But then 12am became 3am and well- You know the drill.
> 
> I haven't written or posted fanfiction since my good ole Wattpad days (...*shudders*) but I've been writing again recently when I can't sleep. So hopefully this turns out alright!
> 
> Also just a quick note that there wont be any gender-identifying traits in this! I'm willing to write more for specific genders in the future if there are requests, but for right now I want to make it as comfortable as I can for anyone to read!
> 
> Enjoy!

Cheated… Deceived… Surely there was a greater sounding word to describe how you felt.

“I won’t be long.” Asra slings his scarf around his shoulders, securing it under his chin. “I know you have stuff planned today.”

Betrayed. Yeah, that sounded right.

“It’s almost like it’s my day off.” You grumble. Asra chuckles as he side-steps you, moving to the mirror to put on his hat.

“Like I said, it’s only a short trip. You know we can’t leave the shop unstocked for too long.” He fixes his hair from out under his hat. “I’m sure Pasha will understand.” He catches your gaze in the mirror, sending you a warm smile.

You cross your arms with a huff, looking away from your master’s smiling face. Ugh. He’s so hard to stay mad at. Not that he thought for a second that you were _actually_ upset with him. No, you were just being dramatic. You get that from hanging around Illya too much, he says.

“Fine.”

Asra grins and turns, reaching out a hand to pat the top of your head. “I’ll be back.” He ruffles your hair affectionately, laughing and dodging your attempts try to swipe his hands away.

You see him out, cracking a smile before he leaves. As much as you want to keep up the act, you’d never let him leave on bad terms- as silly and dramatic as they might be. He waves one last time before turning the corner and disappearing from your sight, leaving you to tend the shop by yourself.

You could only hope that he would be back in time for your lunch date with Pasha and Pepi.

-

You’ll kill him.

Well, you won’t actually. But you’re not about to let him get off scot free.

You knew he would get side-tracked. As intelligent and capable your master is, it really didn’t take much for him to get distracted and wander off- the promise of adventure luring him in. It wasn’t the first time he’d done it, and it surely wouldn’t be the last. But that didn’t stop it from becoming any less inconvenient.

Sighing, you drop your head down onto the counter, your arms crossed underneath as a cushion. There’s nothing you can do about it now, so there’s no use wasting energy in getting upset over it. It really wasn’t that big of a deal. Unless you considered ‘wasted time that could have been spent petting Pepi’ the worst thing in the world.

Which now that you think about it? Maybe it was.

The crisp Vesuvian air hits you when the shop door opens, the golden bell above it filling the room with its chime. A familiar scent tickles your nose, hints of something earthy and cool- like the smell of a forest after rainfall. It swirls around in your head and leaves you feeling warm, almost safe. You immediately think of Asra and turn your head to look at him.

A man stands in the doorway, his hulking frame blocking out some of the light from outside. It didn’t take a genius to realise that this wasn’t Asra. While your master had some height on you, he was short compared to others. But from one look at this person, you knew even Julian would look small next to him. Not from just height alone - he was large in every sense of the word. His body thick and strong.

But despite his intimidating size, that warm feeling doesn’t waver.

“Ah- Welcome!” You pick your head up from the counter and smile, waving the stranger in. “Please, come in.”

The man gives a startled grunt, taking a quick step back at your voice. The large chain hanging from the collar around his neck rattles and glints in the early afternoon sun, the flare catching your eyes. Your gaze runs along the chain and to his torso, brows cinching in worry. The parts of his chest that are left bare are littered with old scars, some much deeper than others. The cloak he wears is torn and ragged, doing little to guard him from the elements. And the chain...

You straighten up slowly from your spot leaning on the counter. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to frighten you.” You call out gently, flicking your eyes away from the chain and to his gruff face. You can hardly make anything out from behind his shaggy hair. “We would have the place a bit brighter, but Asra says it would ‘ruin the ambience’”

The stranger perks up at the mention of your master, taking a hesitant step back into the doorway.

“… Is he here?”

“Asra? He’s out right now, unfortunately. A customer came in and bought the last of our black salt, so he’s gone off to fetch some more.” _And who knows what else._

“Oh... Uh...”

The man looks desperate to leave, clearly not comfortable with Asra not being around. You can practically hear the gears turning in his head, trying to figure out what to do. It’s almost strange seeing someone who looks so strong seem so uneasy, but you weren’t about to judge a stranger on their anxieties. Especially if they were a friend of Asra’s.

“But-” you add on, jarring the man from his thoughts and making him look back to you “I’m sure he won’t be too long now. You’re most welcome to wait for him here, or I can help you with whatever you need!”

You both stare at each other, neither of you making a move to say anything. You flash him an encouraging and (hopefully) friendly smile, not wanting to rush him or make him more uncomfortable. His eyes widen slightly as his face flushes pink, the colour creeping all the way to the tips of his ears. Pursing his lips, he looks away, making a point to look at anything in the shop that isn’t you.

“...Okay.”

Cute.

“Well, I’ll be right here so call out if you need anything... Uh. I don’t think I caught your name.” You smile sheepishly. The man frowns, still refusing to look at you. His mouth opens before quickly closing again, the crease between his brows deepening. It’s like there’s a war going on in his head over whether or not to tell you. You’re just about to tell him not to worry when he mumbles out a reply.

“Muriel.”

 _Muriel._ What a pretty name.

“Well, Muriel.” You smile fondly. “You’re most welcome to sit back there if you’d rather wait.” You gesture back towards the small, curtained off room used for readings. “It’s rather cosy, so I wouldn’t blame you.”

Muriel nods but says nothing, moving out of the doorway and further into the room instead. He still looks uneasy, but not as much as before. Not wanting to make him feel anxious, you make yourself busy with dusting shelves behind the counters, reaching up on the tips of your toes to get to the very back of them.

You hum as you work, filling the silence of the shop with whatever melody comes to your head. It’s not anything you’ve heard before, just random notes strung together to make a song that you’ll likely never hear again. Asra used to tease you about it- telling you that you missed your calling as a bard. But like anything it grew on him, and now you’ll sometimes get him joining in, or humming himself to fill in the silence.

You don’t expect to see Muriel at the counter when you turn, but there he was, making you jump slightly in surprise. You hadn’t noticed he was standing there, didn’t even hear him come over. How long had he been waiting for you? Did he call out and you didn’t notice? Your feel your cheeks flush hot with embarrassment.

“Ah, sorry about that.” You chuckle, rubbing the back of your neck. “I guess I got kind of carried away...”

You flick your eyes up to meet his. He looks… sad. You don’t know how you can tell, but you can. It’s a familiar feeling, one you recognise all too well. It’s not the distressing kind of sad- the one that builds up too fast too quickly, backed by anger and fear. It’s more subdued, like it’s been there for a while. Having to live and come to terms with it. As if you’ve lost something you know won’t come back.

It’s hard seeing someone, especially him, look so vulnerable. You can’t help but frown, worry niggling away in the back part of your brain. He notices this and clears his throat, the expression gone in a flash. He looks away, breaking the eye contact once again.

“Myrrh.”

You blink, snapping out of your daze. “Sorry?”

“I need Myrrh.” He grunts, shifting on the spot. “…Please.”

“Oh! Of course. Just one moment!”

You shoot him a small smile and make your way to a large cabinet full of corked bottles and vials, the contents shifting and clinking together when you open the doors. You run your hands softly over the shelves, mumbling names of herbs and salts on your quest for Myrrh.

“Goldenseal… Lavender… Ah! Myrrh!” You pluck the bottle of fragrant gum from the shelf and close the glass doors softly, as not to disturb anything from its place.

You make your way back to the counter, placing the bottle gently on the top. You duck down for a moment to grab a small pouch and some parchment, before also placing those on the glass. You get to work, your deft fingers making a small envelope out of the naturally coloured parchment. Opening the bottle, you tip a generous amount of Myrrh into the envelope, the sweet medicinal smell filling the shop. Sealing it closed, you fit it snugly inside the pouch.

“There we are!” You pop the cork back onto the bottle and slide it to the side. You tie the strings of the pouch closed and offer it out to Muriel for him to take. “I think three gold will do the trick for that one.”

Muriel nods and reaches for the pouch, his rough hand grazing yours.

That’s when you feel it.

It’s like a bright flash of light right behind your eyes, a hot pain centering in the front of your skull. You yelp and let go of the pouch to press the heel of your palm to your forehead. You wince and close your eyes, taking a deep breath. Almost as quickly as it appeared, the pain simmers until it’s just a dull throb, mimicking a headache.

“Gods, sorry about that. I don’t know what happened."

You blink away the haze from your eyes and look back up at Muriel. His eyes are dark, clouded with a harsh storm of emotions. He looks scared.

"Hey, it's okay. Just a headache is all! Nothing to b-"

You don’t get the chance to finish your sentence. Muriel snatches the pouch off the counter and stumbles out of the shop, almost barrelling the door down.

“H-Hey! Wait! Muriel!”

You try to run after him, scrambling out from your spot behind the counter, but you’re too slow. Muriel is already across the road by the time you reach the door. He throws a tortured look at you over his shoulder before darting down an alley, out of your sight.

…

…

What am I doing out here?

Your thoughts are going a mile a minute, everything too loud to think properly. You close your eyes and massage your temples, trying desperately to ease the ache in your head. Eventually things clear up, a calm coming over you. You let out a deep breath and blink your eyes back open, looking out onto the streets of Vesuvia.

The sun is high in the sky, and yet there’s still no sign of Asra.

Oh, right.

Grumbling, you turn to head back inside to continue your wait for him. There’s no way you’re going to make that lunch with Pasha, now.

**Author's Note:**

> Please let me know what you think! I have at least two more chapters planned for this, so i will try to get them up asap <3


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